St Patrick's Day

Suzanne DeChillo/The New York Times

News about St Patrick's Day, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Mar. 18, 2015

OutatNBCUniversal becomes first and only openly gay group to march in New York City's St Patrick's Day Parade after decades of controversy surrounding ban on such groups; critics say lift of ban is far too limited and Mayor Bill de Blasio, who boycotted 2014 march because of exclusionary policies, declines to march for second year in row. MORE

Mar. 16, 2015

Hundreds of thousands of people attend South Boston St Patrick's Day Parade and celebrate new chapter in parade's storied tradition as it opens its ranks for first time to gays and lesbians; ban on participation of gay groups had turned parade into battleground for gay-rights movement. MORE

Mar. 2, 2015

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio participates in alternative St Patrick's Day parade in Sunnyside, Queens, and vows to continue boycotting city's marquee parade because of its exclusion of gays; holds that Fifth Avenue parade's inclusion of one gay pride group this year is still 'too small a change.' MORE

Dec. 17, 2014

OutVets, group of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender veterans, will be allowed to march in Boston's St Patrick's Day parade for the first time in history. MORE

Sep. 4, 2014

Organizers of New York City St Patrick's Day Parade lift ban on openly gay groups marching under their own banner; move brings to a close more than two decades of bitter protests and controversy that thrust annual celebration into national gay rights debate; decision is striking reflection of evolution of gay rights in the city and in American society, and is measure of changing attitudes in hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church. MORE

Mar. 23, 2014

Mar. 17, 2014

Massachusetts State Senator Linda Dorcena Forry hosts annual St Patrick's Day breakfast in South Boston, first time a nonmale, nonwhite, nonresident has been the master of ceremonies of the signature cultural event; while the performance showcases the 'new' multicultural Boston, parade that follows was reminder of the the 'old' Boston, as gays were not allowed to march if they proclaimed their sexual orientation. MORE

Mar. 17, 2014

Guinness USA drops its sponsorship of St Patrick’s Day parade in New York, joining protests of the event's ban on public expression of gay pride; decision is applauded by gay rights groups that had threatened to boycott the company’s products. MORE

Mar. 17, 2014

Editorial praises version of song Danny Boy recorded by Okinawan duo Isamu Shimoji and Yukito Ara, which substitutes Japanese lyrics that capture their feelings for the island; says song captures the vein of sweet suffering of the original, and is particularly poignant on occasion of St Patrick's Day. MORE

Mar. 17, 2014

Op-Ed article by author Rosemary Mahoney describes meeting two poor, young Irish girls in an upscale neighborhood in Dublin before the economic collapse in 2008; expresses admiration for their verve, tenacity, independence and savvy imagination on the occasion of St Parick's Day, noting they were probably not terribly affected by the vagaries of the Irish economy. MORE

Mar. 16, 2014

News analysis; arrival of St Patrick's Day raises question of whether Irish- and alcohol-themed gag merchandise available from companies like Spencer Gifts perpetrates negative stereotypes; many argue that such products are all in good fun. MORE

Mar. 15, 2014

Diplomatic Memo; Obama administration has not nominated a new ambassador to Ireland since Dan Rooney left post in December 2012; 14-month gap between envoys, longest since 1927, has cast a pall over Irish-American relations, especially as Pres Obama meets with Irish Prime Min Enda Kenny for St Patrick's Day celebration. MORE

Mar. 15, 2014

Pre-St. Patrick’s Day rite draws more than 4,000 people to Amherst, Mass, home to University of Massachusetts’s flagship campus; event denigrates into violent confrontations with police officers, who don riot helmets and use pepper spray to break up crowds that lobbed beer bottles, snowballs and fireworks; police arrest 55 people and issue additional summonses. MORE

Mar. 7, 2014

Jim Dwyer About New York column notes that a Bronx pub owner is inspired by Hot Springs, Ark, to hold an annual St. Patrick’s Day parade that is world's shortest--total length of 47 feet; Hot Springs, which has been holding its 98-foot-long parade for more than a decade, is not yielding its title. MORE

Mar. 3, 2014

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s refusal to march in annual St Patrick's Day Parade because it prohibits gay groups has left him caught between the city’s traditional Irish enclaves and progressive advocates emboldened by his leftward leanings. MORE

Mar. 2, 2014

Deal is being worked out that may allow gay advocacy group MassEquality to march in South Boston's St Patrick's Day parade, which would mark significant cultural shift in historically insular Irish enclave. MORE

Mar. 2, 2014

Several Irish musicians, playing styles from traditional reels to Celtic-punk rock, will perform on Long Island in March before and after St Patrick’s Day (Metropolitan/Long Island). MORE

Mar. 1, 2014

New York City Police Commissioner William J Bratton says he intends to march in city's St Patrick’s Day Parade despite Mayor Bill de Blasio's announcement that he will not participate because of parade's history of excluding gay organizations; statement puts Bratton in rare conflict with de Blasio. MORE

Feb. 26, 2014

Maureen Dowd Op-Ed column expresses support for New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio for boycotting the St Patrick's Day Parade in Manhattan because it excludes gays. MORE

Feb. 5, 2014

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio says he will not march in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Manhattan, citing event’s longstanding tensions with gay and lesbian groups; de Blasio, who says he will participate in other events on St Patrick's day to honor city's Irish-Americans, is the first New York mayor in 20 years not to march in parade. MORE

Sep. 8, 2013

Boston City Councilman Bill Linehan agrees to host St Patrick’s Day breakfast with Haitian-American State Senator Linda Dorcena Forry, bowing to criticism over his insistence that Irish-American host annual tradition alone. MORE

Mar. 3, 2013

Devastation from Hurricane Sandy, and promise to rebuild, are inescapable during Queens County St Patrick’s Day Parade in Rockaways, NY; local landmarks along parade route burned down in fire on night of hurricane. MORE

Mar. 17, 2012

Op-Ed article by novelist Peter Behrens suggests that St Patrick's Day should be a reminder to celebrate--not to despise or fear--all immigrants who make a new life in the United States. MORE

Mar. 14, 2012

Irish coffee, which has acquired disreputable image in an era of serious coffee and cocktails, is a simple and elegant drink when made properly; recipe for this St Patrick's Day treat given. MORE

Mar. 14, 2012

Irish Whiskey Cask Scottish Stout, made by Innis & Gunn, and Concannon Irish Whiskey, made at the Cooley Distillery in County Louth, Ireland, bring Irish cheer to America for St Patrick's Day. MORE

Mar. 11, 2012

Several tavern restaurants in Connecticut offer selection of beers in convivial settings for St Patrick's Day (Metropolitan/Connecticut). MORE

Mar. 5, 2012

Residents of Hoboken, NJ, improvise after cancellation of the city's March 3 St Patrick's Day parade by Mayor Dawn Zimmer in reaction to increasing violence at the event in recent years; revelers turn instead to house parties and an organized pub crawl that draws thousands; city officials report that the number of arrests and injuries declined dramatically over last year's festivities. MORE

Jan. 14, 2012

Organizers call off an annual St Patrick's Day parade in Hoboken, NJ, because Mayor Dawn Zimmer wanted it moved to a weekday, following violence at the 2011 parade that resulted in costly cleanup and police overtime; organizers are looking for alternative communities for the event. MORE

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Highlights From the Archives

Editorial Desk

Twenty-five years ago, Dublin was the dullest place on earth to spend St. Patrick's Day: the public houses and bars just did not open in Ireland on St. Patrick's Day. It seems that nobody in the United States ever really believed this.

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March 11, 2015, Wednesday

At the inclusive St. Pat’s for All parade in Queens, Mayor Bill de Blasio vowed to continue to boycott the city’s marquee parade, saying its admission of one gay group this year was “too small a change.”